1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the reclaiming of used railroad spikes, and to an improved high speed, highly efficient method of and apparatus for reclaiming used railraod spikes by straightening and/or tumble cleaning the used spikes.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The reclaiming of used railroad spikes has, in the past, generally been limited to a manual operation employing a driven wire brush wheel or similar abrading tool to clean the spikes which were hand held during the cleaning operation. Spikes which were not too severely bent were sometimes straightened, again one at a time, by an impacting or pressing operation. Such manual reclaiming methods are very slow and hazardous to the operator. As a result, it generally has not been considered economically feasible to reclaim used railroad spikes and it has become common practice to discard the used spikes along the railroad right of way as they are pulled, or to collect them only for scrap value. As a result, power equipment currently used to pull spikes normally does not collect or save the spikes, but rather discards them onto the roadbed as they are pulled. Many millions of dollars worth of spikes are currently being scrapped or discarded annually in the United States alone.
In recent years, the cost of new railroad spikes has increased dramatically, making them an increasingly important element in the cost of track reconstruction and maintenance. Despite this, the increasing labor costs of the prior art manual reclaiming processes have been such that the used spikes have continued to be discarded. One factor in this has been the labor requirement and expense of collecting the used spikes and returning them to a central shop location for manual reclaiming before being returned to the steel or tie gang for use.
In view of the foregoing, it is a primary object of the present invention to provide an improved process of and apparatus for the high speed, efficient reclaiming of used railroad spikes.
Another object of the invention is to provide such a method and apparatus whereby used railraod spikes may be reclaimed and reused at the job site.
Another object of the invention is to provide such a method and apparatus which provides an increased salvage rate.
Another object of the invention is to provide such a method and apparatus which is substantially free of personnel hazards.